


Remember the sensation

by TheSoulsDepths



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types
Genre: (this isn't Grant Morrison's OOC Talia), Bittersweet, Dysfunctional Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Mother-Son Relationship, Warning(s):, but Talia loves her son
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-05-27
Packaged: 2018-07-10 10:56:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6981493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSoulsDepths/pseuds/TheSoulsDepths
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Moments of Damian Wayne and his mother, captured by the five senses, through the passage of time. Drabble set.</p><p>  <em>'Damian’s first memory was of warmth...' </em></p>
            </blockquote>





	Remember the sensation

**Author's Note:**

> Title: Remember the sensation  
> Drabble set  
> Original Work: Batman (Comics)  
> Relationship: Damian Wayne & Talia al Ghul  
> Warning(s): Dysfunctional relationship  
> Disclaimer (for entire work): All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.  
> Author: TheSoulsDepths  
> Note: Constructive criticism is welcomed but negativity is not.

_Sound_

* * *

 

Damian’s first memory was of warmth.

It was a gentle but pervasive warmth, that should not have existed in the Himalayan mountains but held against his Mothers breast, managed to defy the law’s of nature. Her voice murmured nursery rhymes that, to a babe such as he, meant nothing. 

Yet, somehow, it promised to be everything his tiny form needed; if only he would trust in it. 

And he did. 

 

_Smell_

* * *

 

A scent had hung in the air, a mix of copper and a vinegary tang. 

Even as a young child, Damian was familiar with it. The blood that poured from his teacher’s wound, always, made the feeling of filth (caused by his exertion) melt away because it would earn a smile from _her_.

At the time of night when his parade of lessons had ceased the jasmine oil, that accompanied Mother, made him forget about the tiredness and frustration that often welled up inside of him.

As long as she continued to feel proud of him, liken him to his father with a content expression on her face and run her fingers through his hair as he feel asleep…the training he had to endure would all be worth it.

So he believed.

 

_Taste_

* * *

 

The _basbousa_ that Pennyworth had insisted he help create, when he’d caught Damian using the stove in the kitchen, was lacking. 

He had known that the feeling of disappointment was irrational; he had followed the motions and used the exact ingredients that he had imprinted in his mind.

Nevertheless, when he’d nestled into his desk chair, after briskly thanking Pennyworth (as his Father had insisted) for his assistance, he couldn’t help but critique the sweet before him.

Placed on fine British china, the wheaten treat, moist with rich syrup, looked out of place. The image clashed with his memory of eating off of a golden plate, intrinsically patterned, against a backdrop of bathing pools that looked out onto the desert sand.

Without even bothering to sample a forkful, he'd slid it into the trash. After all, the figure he wished to share it with was worlds away.

He missed her.

 

_Touch_

* * *

 

He didn’t lean into the feel of deceptively soft hands, placed on his shoulders, as he once would have. Nor, does he pull away.

He takes note of what is before him; repressing the urge to start, at the realisation that he would soon eclipse the woman in height. 

Deep green eyes, unlike his own (he'd pointedly ignored the mixed feelings of satisfaction and disappointment at that) appeared softer gazing back at his own, than he could recall happening for a long time. 

In truth (as loathe to admit weakness as he was) it was a view that he had missed. Beneath his Kevlar and mask, a stubborn and hopeful part of him grasped the moment tightly. 

But so much had come to pass, that he couldn’t afford to misplace his trust again. 

He just couldn’t.

 

  _Sight_

* * *

 

Damian al Ghul-Wayne, age 24, knew of loss and grief. He had said farewell to allies, quietly tallied up civilians casualties and memorised the scars that should have belonged to him, but were displayed on other bodies.

Once, he had even thought he had lost his father and, naively, he thought it would have prepared him for this.

Looking down at the marble plaque, with the Arabic he had etched into it with his own hands, he realises that he was wrong. 

This time, he didn’t feel anger or even denial. Perhaps, he would have tried bargaining; if he didn’t know that the Pit destroyed more than it restored.

Instead, numbness ran through his limbs and something akin to ice squeezed tight at his chest, eyes and throat. At the areas were he was most vulnerable.

They were points of weakness that his training enabled him to recite off the top of his head, just as someone else would list the items on their shopping lists.

Running a thumb across the lettering of Mother’s name, he wished he knew what to feel. 

How to understand the sight in front of him, knowing that there is no body beneath the ground, to verify what his mind has accepted. 

But he doesn’t. 

 

END.

**Author's Note:**

> *basbousa is a type of middle-eastern cake, which is sweet and can be made from farina or semolina (types of wheat) and is cooked in syrup.
> 
> A/N: I really wish Damian and Talia's relationship was explored more (esp. outside of Grant Morrison's work).
> 
> Apologies if any tenses are mixed up, I tried to write so that the first 4 segments were past tense and the last one in present.
> 
> As this is my first time trying to write in this fandom, I hope this little contribution of mine is alright. 
> 
> ~Thank you for reading~
> 
> Sincerely,  
> TheSoulsDepths


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